Job 29:5
When the Almighty was yet with me, when my children were about me;
Original Language Analysis
בְּע֣וֹד
H5750
בְּע֣וֹד
Strong's:
H5750
Word #:
1 of 5
properly, iteration or continuance; used only adverbially (with or without preposition), again, repeatedly, still, more
Cross References
Psalms 128:3Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.Psalms 30:7LORD, by thy favour thou hast made my mountain to stand strong: thou didst hide thy face, and I was troubled.Joshua 1:9Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.Song of Solomon 2:4He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love.
Historical Context
In patriarchal culture, children (especially sons) represented legacy, security in old age, and divine blessing. The phrase "about me" suggests a protective circle—children gathered around their father for guidance, provision, and blessing. Job's former life included this relational richness. The loss of all ten children in a single day (1:18-19) was catastrophic not only emotionally but theologically—it seemed to prove God's disfavor, which Job's friends argued explicitly.
Questions for Reflection
- How do we distinguish between God's actual presence (theological reality) and felt presence (experiential reality) during suffering?
- What blessings or relationships have represented God's favor to you, and how would their loss challenge your faith?
- How can we maintain confidence in God's presence when circumstances suggest His absence?
Analysis & Commentary
When the Almighty was yet with me—the divine name שַׁדַּי (Shaddai, Almighty) appears 31 times in Job (more than the rest of the Old Testament combined), emphasizing God's power and sovereignty. The phrase was yet with me uses עִמָּדִי (immadi, with me), indicating intimate presence. Job laments God's felt absence—not theological denial of omnipresence but experiential loss of conscious fellowship. When my children were about me uses סְבִיבוֹתַי (sevivotay, around me/surrounding me)—his children encircled him like a protective hedge, the same word used in 1:10 where Satan complains God hedged Job in. That hedge is now gone.
This verse poignantly captures Job's double loss: God's sensed presence and his children's actual presence. The parallelism links these—God's presence was experienced partly through family blessing. Job doesn't merely miss his children; he misses the sense of divine favor they represented. Ancient theology understood children as covenant blessings (Psalm 127:3-5), so losing them suggested losing God's favor. Job's grief is compounded: he mourns his children and questions God's continued presence.